The report notes that the patent itself was filed under an engineer’s name and not under Apple, to ensure it stayed under the radar until it was granted.

Apple states in the patent that the design features a ‘flexible portion’, suggesting this isn’t the kind of bendy smartphone design we’ve been hearing about in relation to Samsung, and that one of the materials that could be used in the device is ceramic.

The patent also details how “Electronic devices may be provided with carbon nanotube structures or other structures based on carbon (e.g., graphene structures, carbon-fiber structures having carbon fibers other than carbon nanotubes, etc.).

Of course, a patent filing is far from a guarantee of a future product, and in this case a foldable iPhone is probably some way off.

But it does show that not only is Apple working on the technology, it’s considering it specifically for the iPhone, so expect more in the way of flexible smartphones in the future.

WATCH: iPhone 7 review

Let us know what you think of the patent in the comments.

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